SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--A public-private collaboration of law enforcement, government, education
and human trafficking leaders today announced the launch of PROTECT
(www.protectnow.org),
an education program designed to reduce human trafficking in communities
across California. PROTECT is being rolled out throughout 35 rural
California counties over the next three years, with the goal of reaching
potentially 325,000 students and teachers.

“We need to do a better job of teaching young people how to protect
themselves and each other from being victimized by traffickers”

“Human trafficking is a global issue that preys on our most vulnerable
populations, including children across California,” said State
Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson. “PROTECT brings
awareness about human trafficking directly to the classroom, and
educates school staff about how to identify victims of trafficking.
These resources can help a child who is being trafficked and hopefully,
prevent a child from falling victim to human trafficking.”

PROTECT applies a three-pronged, trauma-informed approach to fighting
human trafficking. It includes training for county leaders, educators,
and community professionals; age-appropriate classroom curriculum for
grades 5, 7, 9 and 11; and response protocols for supporting potential
trafficking victims.

“We need to do a better job of teaching young people how to protect
themselves and each other from being victimized by traffickers,” said
Deputy Attorney General Maggy Krell. “Prevention, identification, and
early intervention initiatives are vital to decreasing the number of
victims and empowering our youth.”

Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC),
a local government advocacy organization based in Sacramento, and
National Homebuyers Fund, Inc. (NHF),
a nonprofit public benefit corporation, have provided grants to fund a
phased-in program that will reach 35 rural California counties through
the PROTECT
program over the next three years.

“PROTECT is critical for California’s rural counties, and we are
inspired by how this program helps our community members identify and
prevent human trafficking through education,” said RCRC/NHF CEO, Greg
Norton.

The PROTECT
program was developed by three anti-human trafficking organizations : 3Strands
Global, Love
Never Fails and Frederick
Douglass Family Initiatives. Collectively, PROTECT’s founders have
educated more than 100,000 students in 20 California counties and three
states (GA, NY and HI) over the last 10 years. As the leading prevention
education program in the nation, PROTECT has partnered with the
California Attorney General and the California Department of Education
to provide a scalable and systematic prevention education program.
PROTECT has also partnered with CISCO
systems for the core Learning Management System technology, TIP
NOW for its anonymous reporting mobile app and The
Institute for Social Research at California State University,
Sacramento, to provide program metrics and analytics.